This invention relates to a pull-type swather or windrower and is particularly applicable for use in swathers which can be used in duplex, that is one swather can be pulled in echelon relationship relative to the first.
In recent years there has been growing pressure particularly from the farmers in the large grain growing areas to increase the size and working width of farm implements so as to reduce the number of passages across the land by the tractor or implement. This has been of particular importance in swathers and attempts have been made to couple swathers together for use in tandem or in duplex where one moves across the land forwardly and to one side of the second under motive power from the same tractor.
This has caused a number of problems in that firstly, such tandem or duplex arrangements are very difficult to transport from one working location to another. Secondly, the actual coupling between the swathers has been unable to produce a sufficiently manoeuverable machine to allow effective commercial use.
The first problem is not wholly applicable to duplex swathers in that, in all cases, the swather must be transportable by road or highway from one working location to another and normally this is achieved by pivoting or moving the hitch and turning or moving the wheels so that the tractor tows the swather at right angles to its normal working direction. Various proposals for the movement of the hitch and for the movement of the wheels to achieve this position have been made, but none have been fully satisfactory from the opposing viewpoints of simplicity and cheapness of manufacture on the one hand and the stability of the towed swather on the other hand.